Fun Outside

As the weather warmed up in May, we went outside more to play.  Nyles has been enjoying riding his bike in our circle by himself or with the neighborhood kids.  They like to ride up and down the street and play games.  One day he came up to Steve and asked to take off his training wheels.  Steve told him that he would take them off, but once they came off they were going to stay off.  Nyles was a little scared at first, but kept at it, and is riding like a pro now!  He loves riding his bike!

Steve helping Nyles balance on his bike w/out training wheels.

Getting better.

Nyles practiced without the training wheels and got better and balancing, riding, and pedaling.  Then one day, about 2 weeks later, he said "I'm going to ride my bike."  He got on it and just took off.  I had the day off (the Friday before Memorial Day), so it was awesome to be there and see him succeed!  He seriously just went and never looked back!  He is a pro now and rides w/ all the other kids in the neighborhood.  We might need to get him a bigger bike now though :)

Nyles riding his bike w/out training wheels.

In addition to riding his bike, Nyles has learned to ride/drive a Jeep (that we got from Lakes who just moved to Midway).  We got a new battery for it, fixed the tires, and it's been running like a charm now.  Nyles especially likes taking people on rides.

Nyles leaning into the curve.  Taking Carter for a ride in his car-seat, haha :)

Nyles driving Carter in the Jeep.

Taking our neighbor Caitlin for a ride.

Now w/ Ezra.  

Ezra came over for a day to play while Pauline was out of town (New York).

They also had fun shooting dart guns.

So fun!

 Then shooting water guns in the backyard.

Steve went and bought an airplane kite for Nyles.  

They took it to the park and flew it for a while.

Both boys absolutely LOVED it!

Nyles holding the kite string, now Carter's turn.

Steve said Carter was fascinated w/ the kite. 

Carter flying the kite.

It's so fun to be outside and enjoy the beauty around us.  

It's fun to see the boys have fun w/ each other!  We love our boys:)

Nyles' Preschool

Nyles finished up his 2nd year of Preschool in May.  He is officially done with Preschool and is now ready for Kindergarten.  This year he was at Altara Elementary for Preschool and his teacher was Mrs. Armstrong.  He had a lot of fun and learned a lot.  Here are some pictures they took while he was there (descriptions according to Nyles).

Making some sticky stuff.

Picking up leaves and carving a pumpkin.

Playing w/ glue.

Ice skating in PJs.

 Cleaning up.

Coloring and making books.

Playing w/ string, scissors and papers.  Dancing.

Throw the bean bag in the mouth.

Painting w/ their feet.

Counting bears before they can play.

How far can you jump, write your name.

Petting the bunny.

Pretending to be Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, and fell down.

Playing w/ toys.

Looking at butterflies.

Holding the butterfly.

Playing w/ shaving cream.

Wearing aprons while playing w/ shaving cream.

Here are some pics w/ his backpack over the past 2 years.

First day of Preschool, August 2015- 3 years old.

(Jordan Valley School in Midvale, close to our condo we lived in)

First day of Preschool, August 2016- 4 years old.

(Picture at our house in Sandy)

Last day of Preschool, end of May 2017- will be 5 years old in August.

 (Notice the flowers have bloomed and increased in size in 9 months, love it!)

We love Nyles and are so proud of all he's done, learned at Preschool, and for who he's become so far.  He is a joy to have in our family and a wonderful big brother to Carter.  We are so blessed to have him in our family!

Grass and Yard Improvements

The month of May we worked more on our yard and the grass.  After seeding the front lawn, we decided we wanted to Hydroseed the back yard (where we killed the grass last year).  We thought it might be a little easier than just seeding again.  We had someone bid us, and since they had a minimum amount of square footage, we decided to do the front yard again.  There were spots where the grass wasn't growing yet from the seed, so we figured it would help.  So on Monday, May 8th we had the hydro-seeding done.

The seed we planted.  We put straw on top in order to keep it warm and protect it.

The back yard the day before Hydro-seeding it.  We raked and prepped it.

We also put mulch down all the way to the fence.  Steve planted a pear tree for us too.

The front yard w/ the seed w/ planted growing.  

 You'll notice the patches that didn't come in.  

Our Dianthus flowers came back though and are looking good.

The guy starting to Hydro-seed in the back.

Back is almost done.

Over to the front now.

He just went over the existing grass that was coming in from the seed.

The front is done!

Carter loved the straw! 

  

 Pretty tulip and Irises that came up in our front yard.

 And then it snowed and froze!  

That put our lawn back a week or two in it's growth.

Then the snow melted and the flowers bounced back!

Pretty Dianthus and Day Lilies on the porch.

 Over Memorial Day weekend we planted more flowers!  We planted some around the pear tree!

Carter loving the grass and being outside.  A new flower we planted.

White Dianthus and purple flower by the back porch we planted.

Shasta Daisies we planted.  And our Dianthus w/ a Dahlia we planted.

Beautiful Dahlias.  I love them!  I first remember seeing them in Slovenia and are now one of my favorite flowers.  I couldn't resist when I saw them in the store.  So pretty!